by Bella Andre
Fearless in Love
~ The Maverick Billionaires ~
Book 3
Bella Andre & Jennifer Skully
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
About the Book
A note from Bella & Jennifer
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Epilogue
Bella Andre Booklist
Jennifer Skully Booklist
About the Authors
FEARLESS IN LOVE
~ The Maverick Billionaires, Book 3 ~
(c) 2016 Bella Andre & Jennifer Skully
Meet the Maverick Billionaires--sexy, self-made men from the wrong side of town who survived hell together and now have everything they ever wanted. But when each Maverick falls head over heels for an incredible woman he never saw coming, he will soon find that true love is the only thing he ever really needed...
After growing up dirt poor in a seedy Chicago neighborhood, Matt Tremont seemingly has it all now--brains, brawn, and billions. And most important, Noah, his five-year-old son, the one good outcome of a disastrous relationship that destroyed his last ounce of trust. The only thing he's lacking is the perfect nanny for his son. And Ariana Jones is absolute perfection. Utterly enchanting. Completely fascinating. And totally off-limits.
Like a match made in heaven, this is Ari's dream job. Swallowed up in the foster care system after losing her brother and mother, Ari has always dreamed of family. She showers five-year-old Noah with all the love she's kept bottled up inside. Love she could also offer to her gorgeous billionaire boss--if only he weren't the very last man she could ever hope to have.
But when sizzling sparks of attraction turn into a forbidden, sinfully hot night of pleasure, will Ari's love be enough to make Matt forget the past and love fearlessly?
A note from Bella & Jennifer
Few things in life are more fun than writing about sexy billionaires and the women who unexpectedly bring them to their knees! We want to say thank you a million times over to everyone who has fallen in love with the Mavericks. Because of you, we have the best job in the world--and we can't wait to write more delicious romances for you to read in the future.
We hope you love reading Matt and Ari's story as much as we loved writing it!
Happy reading, Bella Andre & Jennifer Skully
P.S. Each book in the Maverick Billionaires series can be read as a stand-alone novel. However, if you would like to find out how it all began, please check out Breathless in Love, Will and Harper's love story, and Reckless in Love, Sebastian and Charlie's story. And watch for Evan's story, Irresistible in Love, coming soon!
Chapter One
Matt Tremont's home was amazing. Ten thousand square feet, maybe fifteen thousand--though it was hard to judge something that massive when Ari was used to living in three hundred square feet.
The man himself left her awestruck. As gorgeous as a movie star, with rangy muscles that made her mouth water, just looking at him was enough to make her lose her words right in the middle of a sentence. He was thirty-four--ten years older than she was--and he made guys her own age seem like boys.
When he'd approached her at the grand opening of Sebastian Montgomery's media headquarters in San Francisco, she'd actually started to tremble. It had seemed like a pivotal moment that would change her life forever, when a gorgeous, charming billionaire wanted to talk to her. She'd fantasized that the sparks flying everywhere weren't just in her imagination. "Ariana," she could almost hear him saying in his deep, sexy voice, "let me whisk you away to my private lair for champagne and caviar."
Only to have her fantasies blown sky-high when he'd asked her to interview as a nanny for his five-year-old son.
Ari was still laughing at herself; obviously, she'd been the only one feeling any sparks. But that didn't make him any less mouthwatering, even in jeans. Especially in jeans.
Her stomach did backflips as she sat across from him in his living room, but she had her crazy attraction under control.
Sort of.
"Ariana," Matt said.
Oh, that voice... It was enough to make a girl spin out into fantasy again.
"Please, call me Ari."
Only Daniel Spencer called her Ariana. Daniel and Matt were two of the Mavericks, five billionaires who had taken the world by storm with their business prowess in many different fields. She knew a little about Matt's past. Like Daniel and the other Mavericks, he hadn't been born into money. She knew what it was to be poor, and she admired them all for what they'd accomplished.
Daniel had given a glowing recommendation to Matt. Though technically he wasn't her boss, since he owned the whole company, Daniel had been really sweet to her since she'd landed the job at Top-Notch DIY when she was eighteen. She'd worked there part time ever since she'd aged out of foster care, scraping together every dime to go to college. Daniel had helped there too, with company-sponsored scholarships, something for which she could never thank him enough. He said she reminded him of his kid sister, Lyssa, who was close to Ari's age.
Not that she wanted Matt to think of her as a little sister. She already had a big brother, even if she hadn't seen him in years. Thinking of Gideon made her chest hurt, so she pushed away the memories as she focused on what Matt was saying.
"Daniel told me that in addition to working at his San Jose store, you also take care of kids."
Nodding, she said, "I graduated from San Jose State last May with a degree in child development. I'd like to be a teacher someday, but right now, I want the one-on-one, full-time experience." She didn't add that she also needed to beef up her cash reserves after using everything for college, even with the scholarships.
He looked at her with a penetrating gaze, seeming to weigh her every word, figuring out how it fit into the whole picture. She wondered if that was part of the reason he was hugely rich and successful--because he took note of everything.
Sitting in a big leather chair next to her, Matt shifted his legs a little wider. "That's very commendable, getting your education while you're working. So tell me more about how you envision teaching my son."
Swallowing hard at the ridiculously sexy picture he made, Ari settled into the buttery smooth leather of the sofa. With an intricate pattern of vibrant colors, the carpet was so thick it tempted her to take off her shoes and sink her toes into the plush pile. She couldn't imagine living in a place like this. Just walking from the front door to the living room had seemed like a mile across polished hardwood floors, past paintings and artwork that probably cost a fortune. But live here she would, if she got the job taking care of Noah.
Her smile grew bigger with the memory of the day she'd played with Matt's son at the youth center Daniel was building in San Jose. "I like to play in the sandbox rather than sticking kids in front of the TV to
let their little minds get warped by cartoons. Not that there's anything wrong with cartoons," she clarified. "As long as they're the cherry on top of the sundae, rather than the entire meal."
"I agree," Matt said with a nod. "Children should be outdoors, enjoying nature, playing with insects, and chasing frogs."
As a kid, she'd lived in an apartment--lots of different apartments--and the only insects she could have played with were cockroaches. The only frogs she'd seen were in stagnant pools of water left behind in abandoned lots. When she wasn't in school, she'd spent her time buried in the pages of books.
"I like the zoo," she continued, hoping she was saying the right things. The problem was that he smelled so good, like clean, hot male. It was messing big-time with her concentration. "And you've got Henry Coe State Park almost in your backyard." His huge home was nestled in the trees overlooking Anderson Lake. Footpaths probably led up into the hills right from the back door. "Is that why you chose to live in Morgan Hill--because it's so much prettier than San Jose?"
"After I had my new factory located here, I figured it was easier to build our home nearby."
He was so matter-of-fact. Did he ever chase butterflies with his son? She hoped he did.
To prep her for this interview, Daniel had told her that Matt was a brilliant high-tech robotics manufacturer--and a bookworm. Crossing the mile-long foyer, she'd caught a brief glimpse of a library jammed with books. If she got the job, she'd love to spend as much of her free time there as possible. Evidently, Matt had put himself through college with scholarships and hard work, blowing through in three years instead of four. His ideas and inventions were so groundbreaking that his professors had told him to forget earning a PhD and move right into industry instead, so he'd started his company, Trebotics International, when he was about her age.
Though she admired him for his smarts and his success, she didn't know anything about him as a father. Or as a man. But Daniel had said he was the best dad any kid could ever have. He'd also mentioned that Noah's mom had dropped out of the picture early and rarely saw her son.
How had that affected Matt and Noah?
"One of Noah's previous nannies had a boyfriend she constantly talked with on the phone when she should have been paying attention to my son. Will that be a problem for you?"
"I don't have a boyfriend, or unlimited texting and minutes on my cell phone." She couldn't afford a smartphone, and she'd signed up for the cheapest service plan she could get. "So you definitely won't find me distracted by my phone."
"I'm glad to hear that. How many children do you currently babysit?"
Interesting that he wanted to know more about her actual experience with children rather than what she'd taken in school, but she knew that book smarts weren't always the same as hands-on learning. "Six, but only part time for each. One is my best friend's little boy. She's a single mom, and I help out with Jorge." Ari gave it the Spanish pronunciation: Hor-hay. She loved Jorge and didn't charge Rosie. "I also work for four women in the South Bay who aren't working moms, taking care of their kids when they've got errands or appointments. I wouldn't be leaving them in the lurch if I came to work for you." She didn't want him to think she'd dump him if a better opportunity came along. "I've got friends who would love to work for them. I'd just have to make arrangements." It would be difficult leaving the kids, but she needed the full-time job. Both Daniel and the moms understood that, though it was harder for the kids to accept. "They all said they'd give you references."
"I'd like to speak with them."
She fished in her bag for the list. "Here you go." Their hands brushed, and she went warm all over.
As he looked over the names, numbers, and addresses, she noted that he had sun lines at his eyes, and she wondered if he swam with Noah in the huge kidney-shaped pool she'd seen through the French doors. Or maybe they spent time in the playground out back, with its swings, slides, monkey bars, and huge sandbox.
He was rich. He could give his son anything that was for sale. But she hoped he gave his son time too.
Looking back up at her, he asked, "How long have you been babysitting?"
"Since I was sixteen." Not counting the foster homes where she'd taken care of the younger kids.
"And you're twenty-four now?" He frowned slightly as he said her age, but before she became worried, he said, "Eight years is good experience."
She smiled, then dove in with her own question. "What would my duties be?"
"You would get Noah up in the morning, take him to school. He started kindergarten this year, and he's attending a private school in Almaden Valley."
That was twenty-five minutes away. She thought about the morning commute traffic and how brutal it was as more companies moved into Silicon Valley.
As if he could see the thought bubble over her head, he said, "My driver Doreen would drive you when you take Noah out." Matt Tremont and his son lived a life she'd seen only on TV, with private drivers and mansions. "You would also be responsible for his nutrition. I have a cook, but I'd want you to make sure he's eating healthy."
Nutrition had been part of her education. "No treats?"
He smiled for the first time. And she stopped breathing.
Literally stopped.
No one should be allowed that much gorgeousness. She would see that smile in her dreams.
"Treats were my favorite thing as a kid. Probably because I didn't get many." He said it with a laugh, but she wasn't sure she bought the way he tried to play off his difficult childhood with a smile. Ari hadn't grown up with much either--and she'd also learned how to smile through it. "In any case," he continued, "treats are fine every now and then, but I don't want him gorging on candy and soda." With that, he went on with her duties. "He's only in school in the morning, so I would want you to devise lesson plans for the afternoon. Trips to the zoo and other activities that teach him would be great. He's learning to swim, and I'd want you to continue, as long as he's got his water wings on."
A commotion in the hall drowned out the rest of Matt's list--a young voice, the stomp of running feet. For a little boy, Noah Tremont made big noise, which she loved.
He flew around the corner, sliding on the hardwood floor until his toes hit the rug. "Daddy, Daddy, you gotta see!" A moment later, he saw Ari. "I know you."
"We met a month ago at the house your daddy was building with his friends."
Noah had a mop of hair as dark as his father's and cheeks that hadn't lost their baby roundness yet. He ran around the coffee table and flung himself at her on the sofa, grabbing her hand. "You gotta see too."
"Noah," Matt interrupted. "We're in a meeting."
A harried older woman appeared in the doorway, wisps of hair flying out of a bun that had probably been neat that morning. This must be the temp Matt said he'd brought in while he was searching for a full-time nanny. "Mr. Tremont, I'm sorry. Noah, come here." Her voice was more tired than annoyed.
But Noah was too excited to listen. Ari plucked him up and set him on her lap, a wriggling bundle of boundless energy. He was adorable. She wanted to spend her days with someone so happy and sweet, take him to the zoo, chase butterflies, teach him the names of birds.
"You know"--she gave Noah the biggest smile--"it's nice to let people finish what they're saying. So as soon as your dad's done talking, then you can show us whatever you want."
"It's my new Lego set Jeremy gave me!" He couldn't stop bouncing. Ari remembered Jeremy from the day at the youth home, a sweet young man--a brother of one of the other Mavericks, maybe?
"All righty then. We'll finish up, then you can show us your Lego." She gave Noah a solemn look. "I'm a Lego master, by the way."
"Cool, me too!" He nodded vigorously, his curls bouncing. Then he stopped and bit his lip, and she was struck by how much of a mini-Matt he was. "I forgot your name."
"It's Ari."
He beamed at her. Yup, the kid version of his dad's smile. "I like your name." With that, he hopped off her lap.
When Ari turned back to Matt, he was staring at her with his head cocked slightly. "A Lego master?" He shook his head. "Even I have a hard time putting some of them together."
"I doubt that," she said, which made him smile again. Oh, that smile. It got under her skin, made her hum inside. Everywhere inside. "You were saying? About my duties?"
"We've pretty much covered it." He began to list the things she'd get out of the deal. "You'd have your own suite next to Noah's. You could eat meals with us, but you'd be free to raid the kitchen. Sunday would be your day off. If you wanted to make prior arrangements to go out in the evening for a date or whatever, that would be fine. I try to be home in the evenings and on weekends for Noah."
"Like I said, I don't have a boyfriend, but I get together with my girlfriends sometimes in the evenings."
He nodded, then said, "The salary is twelve hundred a week, plus medical insurance."
She barely managed to keep her chin from hitting her knees. "A week?" She couldn't believe it. It rivaled what she made in a month. Plus benefits.
"Considering that you would be on duty almost twenty-four hours a day, six days a week, it's reasonable."
"Reasonable?" She was afraid she sounded like an airhead repeating everything he said, but his offer was beyond anything she'd dreamed of. "I mean, yes, it's totally reasonable."
Especially considering all she had to do was look after an adorable little boy and live in a fabulous mansion with her own suite. And she could have all the sizzling-hot fantasies she wanted about Matt, whose bedroom would undoubtedly be just down the hall. Completely secret fantasies, locked in a compartment inside her brain that she'd wait to open until she was alone.
If there was one thing she knew how to do, it was compartmentalize. She'd spent six years in the foster care system after her mom died, so Ari was a master at living a rich fantasy life without confusing it with reality. Everyone deserved a dream world. In fact, it was healthy--as long as you knew the difference between fantasy and reality, and Ari always had.
She knew what it was like to have things ripped away from you at a moment's notice, when you thought a foster family cared about you only to realize it was the money they received that meant the most, or their real daughter hated your guts so you had to go. And she knew about other things that still gave her nightmares sometimes--foster fathers and brothers who didn't care about the personal boundaries of the new foster girl.
